[MerlinWerks]

I have Windows Vista Ultimate.  The upgrade strategy won't let me upgrade to a lesser edition, like Professional.
 
So even though I bought the most expensive Vista edition, I still have to pay $220 to upgrade to 7.
 
Steve

I'm reasonably certain you would be able to use a Win 7 "upgrade" package vs. a "full retail" package. What you won't be able to do is an "in-place" upgrade. You'll have to do a "clean/custom" install, saving all your data and reinstalling all your applications, there is a migration tool that helps to mitigate the pain involved with this somewhat 

There really isn't a whole lot of difference between Home Premium and Professional so you may want to reevaluate whether those few extra features are worth the extra cash. That being said, Newegg has W7 Professional full OEM install for $149.

[srb]

I have Windows Vista Ultimate.  The upgrade strategy won't let me upgrade to a lesser edition, like Professional.
 
So even though I bought the most expensive Vista edition, I still have to pay $220 to upgrade to 7.
 
Steve

I'm reasonably certain you would be able to use a Win 7 "upgrade" package vs. a "full retail" package. What you won't be able to do is an "in-place" upgrade. You'll have to do a "clean/custom" install, saving all your data and reinstalling all your applications, there is a migration tool that helps to mitigate the pain involved with this somewhat 

There really isn't a whole lot of difference between Home Premium and Professional so you may want to reevaluate whether those few extra features are worth the extra cash. That being said, Newegg has W7 Professional full OEM install for $149.

Yes, I knew I could do a clean install, but with the amount of software and configuration I have, it would probably be a solid two day affair.
 
I want/need the ability to log into a domain, so that excludes Home Premium.  But now Professional includes Complete PC Backup (image), where it was previously only included in Vista Ultimate.
 
That leaves the main operational differences between Ultimate and Professional being 35 Language support (which I don't use) and BitLocker Encryption (which I haven't used).
 
The difference between Ultimate and Professional OEM is $40, so that is the price differential I would have to pay to be able to do an "in-place" upgrade, which is probably worth it - IF the "in-place" upgrade works flawlessly!
 
Steve

[GHM]

And what really sucks is that my video interface is PCI Express 16, of which there are very few video cards any more.  And I bought the computer really not that long ago.  The manufacturers continue to "upgrade" the hardware, leaving no option for some of us other than to upgrade (meaning, buy a new motherboard).

If your card has Vista driver support it will most likely work with Win 7.

Does anyone know if office 2000 will work on win7?

I have win2000 which I really haven't had any problems with but new versions of quick books will not work with 2000.

Thanks

I would think Win 7 as with all the prior OS's is backwards compatible with MS Office software.



I picked up Win 7 Home premium for $30. If you have a kid or friend with a College email address its a cheap upgrade.

[srb]

Does anyone know if office 2000 will work on win7?

I would think Win 7 as with all the prior OS's is backwards compatible with MS Office software.

Office 2000 did not work with Windows Vista, so I would assume that it won't work with Windows 7.
 
Although you may get parts of it to work, it has proven to be a nightmare headache, and Outlook will definitely not work properly.

However, if you buy the Professional or Ultimate edition, and dowload the XP Compatability Mode software, it should/may work.
 
Steve

[GHM]

Does anyone know if office 2000 will work on win7?

I would think Win 7 as with all the prior OS's is backwards compatible with MS Office software.

Office 2000 does not work with Windows Vista, so I would assume that it won't work with Windows 7.
 
Although you may get parts of it to work, it has proven to be a nightmare headache, and Outlook will definitely not work properly.
 
Steve

Thanks Steve for the clarification. I guess all the ones I have here are newer than 2000. There so many different versions of this it is hard to keep up! 
Will it work in XP? If so you'll need the Ultimate version to use it I guess or maybe the Professional?

[srb]

Will it work in XP? If so you'll need the Ultimate version to use it I guess or maybe the Professional?

Yes, it will work in XP.  I modified my above post to mention the XP Compatability Mode software available for use with Professional or Ultimate editions.
 
That may be one more reason to push me toward the upgrade, as I abandoned my Office 2000 when I got Vista, and have been using Sun Open Office and Windows Mail.
 
Steve

[MaxCast]

Thanks for the info on win2k and office 2k.

Would a new computer with win 7 and office basic 07 be able to use office 00 files?

[srb]

Thanks for the info on win2k and office 2k.

Would a new computer with win 7 and office basic 07 be able to use office 00 files?

Yes, all office versions can read earlier files, and you can choose to set a default to save existing and new files in an older, more compatible format.
 
Steve

[Philistine]

I've been watching this thread with interest as I'm still undecided on the value of a Windows 7 'upgrade'.  On Monday I bought the 3 user Home Premium pack and it's still in its still unopened waiting for me!

I currently have XP on a PC and a laptop, Vista on a laptop and 2 PC's.  I must be the only user who's found Vista to be a more stable, useful and robust OS than XP.  Having read various forums it appears that 7 is no more than a slimmed down version of Vista, and the only benefit to me would be as an XP upgrade.

I'm interested in any feedback anyone has on the real value of Windows 7.

[hometheaterdoc]

I've been watching this thread with interest as I'm still undecided on the value of a Windows 7 'upgrade'.  On Monday I bought the 3 user Home Premium pack and it's still in its still unopened waiting for me!

I currently have XP on a PC and a laptop, Vista on a laptop and 2 PC's.  I must be the only user who's found Vista to be a more stable, useful and robust OS than XP.  Having read various forums it appears that 7 is no more than a slimmed down version of Vista, and the only benefit to me would be as an XP upgrade.

I'm interested in any feedback anyone has on the real value of Windows 7.

It's not just slimmed down... it's downright barebones by comparison.  Vista is an absolute pig on resources.  I have one machine that refuses to install service pack 2 for Vista.  It BSOD's at least 5 times a week.  It's a quad core machine with 4GB of RAM and it runs worse than my 6 year old XP box in another room.  I have a machine in the office that runs Vista that is so slow, I had to tweak it to within an inch of its life to get it to work and it still hangs and stutters.  I dropped 7 on it and it boots in 12 seconds and absolutely screams now...

I like the taskbar organization.  The window "preview panes" feature for multiple open windows when you hover over that icon on the taskbar is very convenient.  I also like that of all the machines I've dropped it on, only one machine required me to install a single driver after the OS was installed.  It knew every single device I had and installed the proper drivers without having to go download them or find the old driver disks...

The power management capabilities are great in win 7.  Workgroup networking is also cleaner and easier.

Even the beta versions were pretty darn stable.  Unlike Vista where I had to re-install the OS 17 times in the first sixty days of owning a Dell that I couldn't get with XP, Win 7 has been extremely stable.  Add in the extreme performance improvements by slimming it down and I'm a happy camper with Win7.  I never thought I'd say that about a Microsoft operating system..... ever....

[ctviggen]

Will it work in XP? If so you'll need the Ultimate version to use it I guess or maybe the Professional?

Yes, it will work in XP.  I modified my above post to mention the XP Compatability Mode software available for use with Professional or Ultimate editions.
 
That may be one more reason to push me toward the upgrade, as I abandoned my Office 2000 when I got Vista, and have been using Sun Open Office and Windows Mail.
 
Steve

That probably was a good idea.  I'm using Office 2007, and I hate it.  Every day, I have to go online to find some feature that I used to know where it was located (and some of these are permanently damaged under 2007) ... and I've been using Office since there was an "office". 

[Philistine]

I've been watching this thread with interest as I'm still undecided on the value of a Windows 7 'upgrade'.  On Monday I bought the 3 user Home Premium pack and it's still in its still unopened waiting for me!

I currently have XP on a PC and a laptop, Vista on a laptop and 2 PC's.  I must be the only user who's found Vista to be a more stable, useful and robust OS than XP.  Having read various forums it appears that 7 is no more than a slimmed down version of Vista, and the only benefit to me would be as an XP upgrade.

I'm interested in any feedback anyone has on the real value of Windows 7.

It's not just slimmed down... it's downright barebones by comparison.  Vista is an absolute pig on resources.  I have one machine that refuses to install service pack 2 for Vista.  It BSOD's at least 5 times a week.  It's a quad core machine with 4GB of RAM and it runs worse than my 6 year old XP box in another room.  I have a machine in the office that runs Vista that is so slow, I had to tweak it to within an inch of its life to get it to work and it still hangs and stutters.  I dropped 7 on it and it boots in 12 seconds and absolutely screams now...

I like the taskbar organization.  The window "preview panes" feature for multiple open windows when you hover over that icon on the taskbar is very convenient.  I also like that of all the machines I've dropped it on, only one machine required me to install a single driver after the OS was installed.  It knew every single device I had and installed the proper drivers without having to go download them or find the old driver disks...

The power management capabilities are great in win 7.  Workgroup networking is also cleaner and easier.

Even the beta versions were pretty darn stable.  Unlike Vista where I had to re-install the OS 17 times in the first sixty days of owning a Dell that I couldn't get with XP, Win 7 has been extremely stable.  Add in the extreme performance improvements by slimming it down and I'm a happy camper with Win7.  I never thought I'd say that about a Microsoft operating system..... ever....

Thanks for sharing your experiences Shane, clearly for non-functioning Vista PC's 7 is a great option.

Having read user forums I've decided to leave my working XP and Vista PC's/laptops alone, I just don't see enough benefits in the 'upgrade' in fact it looks more like a downgrade.  Having spent 7 hours last week reinstalling XP, software and data on my partners laptop I've decided to put my Windows 7 refund into a 'my next computer is a MAC' fund. 

It reminds me of the first two cars I bought here in the US 8 years ago, my Audio cost $34k and my wife's Ford Escape $24k.  I saw the Audi dealer once a year and the Ford dealer once a month with recalls and warranty work - when it came to trade them 4 years later the monthly depreciation on the Audi was about $275 and the Ford $450.  I see the same analogy with PC's and Mac's - initial high ownership cost with Mac's translates to lower overall cost, whereas PC's are cheap to buy and a PITA in terms of resource time. 

[GHM]

I've been watching this thread with interest as I'm still undecided on the value of a Windows 7 'upgrade'.  On Monday I bought the 3 user Home Premium pack and it's still in its still unopened waiting for me!

I currently have XP on a PC and a laptop, Vista on a laptop and 2 PC's.  I must be the only user who's found Vista to be a more stable, useful and robust OS than XP.  Having read various forums it appears that 7 is no more than a slimmed down version of Vista, and the only benefit to me would be as an XP upgrade.

I'm interested in any feedback anyone has on the real value of Windows 7.

It's not just slimmed down... it's downright barebones by comparison.  Vista is an absolute pig on resources.  I have one machine that refuses to install service pack 2 for Vista.  It BSOD's at least 5 times a week.  It's a quad core machine with 4GB of RAM and it runs worse than my 6 year old XP box in another room.  I have a machine in the office that runs Vista that is so slow, I had to tweak it to within an inch of its life to get it to work and it still hangs and stutters.  I dropped 7 on it and it boots in 12 seconds and absolutely screams now...

I like the taskbar organization.  The window "preview panes" feature for multiple open windows when you hover over that icon on the taskbar is very convenient.  I also like that of all the machines I've dropped it on, only one machine required me to install a single driver after the OS was installed.  It knew every single device I had and installed the proper drivers without having to go download them or find the old driver disks...

The power management capabilities are great in win 7.  Workgroup networking is also cleaner and easier.

Even the beta versions were pretty darn stable.  Unlike Vista where I had to re-install the OS 17 times in the first sixty days of owning a Dell that I couldn't get with XP, Win 7 has been extremely stable.  Add in the extreme performance improvements by slimming it down and I'm a happy camper with Win7.  I never thought I'd say that about a Microsoft operating system..... ever....

Thanks for sharing your experiences Shane, clearly for non-functioning Vista PC's 7 is a great option.

Having read user forums I've decided to leave my working XP and Vista PC's/laptops alone, I just don't see enough benefits in the 'upgrade' in fact it looks more like a downgrade.  Having spent 7 hours last week reinstalling XP, software and data on my partners laptop I've decided to put my Windows 7 refund into a 'my next computer is a MAC' fund. 

It reminds me of the first two cars I bought here in the US 8 years ago, my Audio cost $34k and my wife's Ford Escape $24k.  I saw the Audi dealer once a year and the Ford dealer once a month with recalls and warranty work - when it came to trade them 4 years later the monthly depreciation on the Audi was about $275 and the Ford $450.  I see the same analogy with PC's and Mac's - initial high ownership cost with Mac's translates to lower overall cost, whereas PC's are cheap to buy and a PITA in terms of resource time. 

Well good luck to you. You are clearly and sadly mistaken if you think Win 7 is anything like XP or Vista. Too be quite honest, I don't see why anyone would want to use either after experiencing Win 7. Both and even more so with XP is more work to operator, very clunky.

I installed a fresh copy of Win 7 4 days ago. Guess how long it took. If loading from a thumb drive or external HD. The process took 30 minutes max.

This software finds most of you're drivers for you. 7 hrs loading up software ? Those days are over with Win 7. I get so sick of the Mac PC analogy bullshit! Either you guys have not a clue into mantaining a computer or you just need an excuse to make diggs about PC.

They use the same parts so there's absolutely nothing special about what comes inside a Mac. SO they are less virus prone. If there wasn't some one hating on MS to begin with, there wouldn't be a such thing as a virus.

How about the limitations? Yes a Mac has limitations as well. Neither is perfect. This is why I choose to run PC.
My PCs aren't in the shop weekly, monthly or yearly. I tell ya..I think some of the problems you guys have is purely operator error.

[srb]

If there wasn't some one hating on MS to begin with, there wouldn't be a such thing as a virus.

Actually I think it's just a market share thing.  Virus writers write them to f**k with as many people as possible.  If it were the other way around, and Apple had the huge installed base, viruses would be developed for them.
 
Steve

[GHM]

If there wasn't some one hating on MS to begin with, there wouldn't be a such thing as a virus.

Actually I think it's just a market share thing.  Virus writers write them to f**k with as many people as possible.  If it were the other way around, and Apple had the huge installed base, viruses would be developed for them.
 
Steve

Well that could very well be true Steve. Hell it wouldn't surprise me if the Virus protection builders had a back door where the virus writers worked! 
I never had a huge problem with viruses at home. Maybe I've just been lucky. I notice Win XP is like an open door to viruses compared to 7.

I suppose it all depends on what a person uses their computers for to which may fit them better. From a big Home-theater fan, Win 7 OS smokes the shit out of OSX .....not even a competition.

[srb]

Hell it wouldn't surprise me if the Virus protection builders had a back door where the virus writers worked! 

Yeah, I've thought about that too, probably reinforced from Sandra Bullock in "The Net" and the "Gatekeeper" program.  And the Praetorians.
 
I've never had a virus either, but I do follow a consistent anti-virus routine, don't open unknown or suspect emails, don't accept cookies, etc.
 
Steve

[ctviggen]

Well good luck to you. You are clearly and sadly mistaken if you think Win 7 is anything like XP or Vista. Too be quite honest, I don't see why anyone would want to use either after experiencing Win 7. Both and even more so with XP is more work to operator, very clunky.

I installed a fresh copy of Win 7 4 days ago. Guess how long it took. If loading from a thumb drive or external HD. The process took 30 minutes max.

This software finds most of you're drivers for you. 7 hrs loading up software ? Those days are over with Win 7. I get so sick of the Mac PC analogy bullshit! Either you guys have not a clue into mantaining a computer or you just need an excuse to make diggs about PC.

They use the same parts so there's absolutely nothing special about what comes inside a Mac. SO they are less virus prone. If there wasn't some one hating on MS to begin with, there wouldn't be a such thing as a virus.

How about the limitations? Yes a Mac has limitations as well. Neither is perfect. This is why I choose to run PC.
My PCs aren't in the shop weekly, monthly or yearly. I tell ya..I think some of the problems you guys have is purely operator error.

Even though I'm not overly fond of XP and can't stand Vista, I don't really have troubles on either computer we have at home.  The both run very well.  And, the troubles we do have, I cannot ascertain whether it's the manufacturer's fault or Windows.  For instance, the computer I put together myself sometimes won't come out of hibernation.  I have to do a hard reboot (ie, unplug it).  Some of my motherboard's vendor's software is wacky.  I've uninstalled it because of that.  Again, that's the vendor, not windows.

[jqp]

And, the troubles we do have, I cannot ascertain whether it's the manufacturer's fault or Windows.  For instance, the computer I put together myself sometimes won't come out of hibernation.  I have to do a hard reboot (ie, unplug it).  Some of my motherboard's vendor's software is wacky.  I've uninstalled it because of that.  Again, that's the vendor, not windows.

I have a similar problem with my first Win 7 install that went well - there is a video driver or settings problem. I have a Saphire ATI 4870. Sometimes when it hibernates the card does not come back with a signal for the LCD monitor (on 2 different monitors). I am researching it now. If I recall, sometimes when I first boot up there is no signal once Windows fully loads, before the login.

I have found video driver issues in the event logs, and have seen various work arounds talked about also, such as setting the video card fan to run at full speed, underclock the card, etc. These things should be eventually worked out by ATI and nVidia but it can be a real pain.

I also found out how to get one of my hard drives to show more than 33MB! This was not a Win7 thing though...

[srb]

For instance, the computer I put together myself sometimes won't come out of hibernation.  I have to do a hard reboot (ie, unplug it).

Sometimes that it caused by other non-Microsoft programs or processes running in the background.  (If you do need to reboot, you might be able to reboot without unplugging by holding in the power switch for 5 seconds until it turns off, then hit the power switch again to startup.)
 

I have a Saphire ATI 4870. Sometimes when it hibernates the card does not come back with a signal for the LCD monitor (on 2 different monitors).

I have an ATI 3400 series on 2 HDMI connected monitors.  Ocassionally I have that problem also.  I though it may be an HDMI/HDCP handshake problem.  Just curious if your monitors are connected via HDMI or DVI?
 
Steve

[jqp]

 

I have a Saphire ATI 4870. Sometimes when it hibernates the card does not come back with a signal for the LCD monitor (on 2 different monitors).

I have an ATI 3400 series on 2 HDMI connected monitors.  Ocassionally I have that problem also.  I though it may be an HDMI/HDCP handshake problem.  Just curious if your monitors are connected via HDMI or DVI?
 
Steve

My card is the SAPPHIRE VAPOR-X HD 4870 2GB GDDR5 PCI-E (ooh la la)

http://www1.sapphiretech.com/us/products/products_overview.php?gpid=296

I am using a DVI cable and the signal is DVI-D